Scouting Program Expansion

Proposal for:

Scouting Program Expansion

City, State

Presented to:

The Foundation Name

Submitted by:

(Name of Council),

Boy Scouts of America

Address

City, State, Zip Code

Phone #

I. Statement of Need

The community known as (City) is a distressed neighborhood with serious problems related to crime, drug use, and poverty. It is one of the poorest cities in the United States, landlocked by surrounding and, for the most part, more wealthy municipalities --- a city described as an inner city without an outer city. The children who reside in these neighborhoods have very few positive influences on their young lives and little opportunity to succeed in life.

% of the # residents of (City) are black. % live below the national poverty level. Unemployment is three times the national average. # percent of the residents receive public assistance. Membership in teenage gangs is rampant. Parents worry, not only about the basic necessities of food, clothing, and shelter, but also the unhealthy physical environment in which they live. There are few safe places for children to play. Fire -scorched buildings and vacant lots are commonplace throughout (City) It is evident that (City) is one of the most impoverished communities in America.

Despite-recent progress in law enforcement, (City) remains a very violent city and residents are fearful for their safety. Until recently, it was the most deadly city in the U.S. with a homicide rate exceeding that of any other city. It continues to rank near the top in this category.

And so the vicious cycle continues. Children become discouraged with their situation and see no way to climb out of their circumstances and improve their lives.

The neighborhood environment in which a child is raised presents the single largest factor influencing his/her decisions about staying in school, studying hard, becoming a parent, joining a gang, or becoming involved in drugs. We know that the economic condition of a community heavily determines the social institutions which support its citizens. Fire and police departments, sanitation, parks and recreation, and the local school systems are each dependent upon the tax base and revenues available from the community's citizenry.

The profile of (County, State) produced by the United Way of (City) (year) reveals that approximately % of the County's impoverished persons live in the (City Name). It further reveals that % of the city’s children reside in a poor family, compared to % in the rest of the county. Children who are raised in distressed neighborhoods are offered too many chances to fail, while having too few opportunities to succeed, much less excel. Families are in a survival mode as opposed to growth or even maintenance. In families with two parents, both must work to make ends meet, leaving too few hours for time with families.

Children in the (City) School System exhibit poor academic achievement, with the failure of % of students being promoted to the next grade. The statewide average in (State) is %.

Single--- parent homes (which is the rule rather than the exception), too often are forced to relinquish the front--- door keys to children as young as # years old who return to an empty home after school. Clearly, other adults in the child’s life must step in to offer support for both the child and his/her family.

These children represent the future in areas like (City). Unless we can provide some handles for them to grasp and pull themselves up and into an effective leadership role in the community, our likelihood of achieving any real success with social programs is slim to none.

This is where it has to start. Children must see a reason to hope for something better, a reason sufficient to motivate them to strive to learn the life skills they will need to compete and to lead. And even that is not enough. They must develop pride in themselves and a sense of moral and ethical behavior sufficient to resist the lure of drugs and crime.

I. Background Information

We believe that an effective program of Scouting, with strong support from community and school leaders and cooperation from parents, can make a very significant impact on these problems. If young people accept the Scout Oath and Scout Law as their guiding light, there can be no stronger moral or ethical code.

For 93 years, The Boy Scouts of America has used an informal educational program to help children reach their full potential. We must reach the children of (city) in the primary years in order to instill the morals and values they will need to carry them through a successful life. Once they reach high school, without effective positive intervention, it is too late.

A. Initial Program Efforts----In response to the needs of the children of (City), an in -school Scouting pilot project was initiated in the spring of (city) through the efforts of the (City) School District #, the Girl Scout Council, and the (Name of Council), B.S.A.

Utilizing volunteer leaders at an elementary school (Park Annex) in the city, one class period per week was designated for Boy Scout/Girl Scout meetings. Uniform components, handbooks, and materials for activities were provided .for all participating children. The initial project was deemed an overwhelming success by teachers and school administrators. Plans were then made to extend the program to another school the following fall.

B. Program Expansion---Since this beginning in (year), the in-school Scouting program has

continued to extend Boy Scouting and Girl Scouting to a growing number of children in (City). There are currently # elementary schools participate in the program. Financial support for these programs has come from the Greater (City) United Way and from the Greater (City) Community Fund. Currently, the in-school Scouting program serves # boys and a like number of girls in # elementary schools.

Schools:

Elementary

Park Elementary

Girls

#
#
#
#
#
#

Boys

C. Traditional Scouting Programs: While the in-School program is able to extend Scouting effectively to large numbers of young people, most of whom would otherwise not be served. The (Name of Council) has recognized the need for traditional Scouting programs which provide a more well-rounded Scouting experience, including the outdoor program which in-school programs, by their nature, are unable to offer. Currently there are # Scout troops, # Cub packs, and # Explorer posts in the (State) District (City), serving a total of # youth.

D. Traditional Scouting units in (City) also have difficulty coming up with sufficient funding for registration, camping experiences, and program materials. Recruiting appropriate and effective volunteer leadership for these units is a continuing problem, although there are some who are exemplary. One of the objectives of the in-school program is to steer boys into traditional Scout units in their communities.

E. Law Enforcement Exploring: Another major Scouting initiative currently underway in (City)) with broad community interest and support is Law Enforcement Exploring. The Explorer program is an important element of the police department’s community policing strategy and is designed to provide alternatives to gang activity, provide a mentoring relationship with police officers in the community policing program, develop the participants self-esteem and leadership skills, develop conflict resolution and peer mediation skills, acquaint the participants with principles of community organizing and advocacy, and in general, foster a closer relationship between the police department and the community it serves.

The Law Enforcement Exploring program is designed to provide competition to (City) two principal gangs, the (name) and the (name) by offering opportunities for self-esteem enhancement, identity, and a sense of connectedness that adolescents crave and street gangs provide.

The program is, in part, an outgrowth of the (City) Violent Crime initiative, a cooperative venture involving the law enforcement community, social service providers, neighborhood and community leaders, churches, educators, and neighborhood residents.

Various high-level agencies and governmental entities are committed to the success of this initiative, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office, The Greater (City) Chamber of Commerce, City Council, and, of course the police department, as well as the (State) of Financial Advisory Authority.

The goals of the program are:

· To expand community policing to all # police districts in the (City Name)

· To improve the relationship between the police and the neighborhood residents

· To position the city to become a Federal "Weed & Seed" community, which is a multi-agency approach to combating violent crime, drug use, and gang activity

· To develop strategies for responding to community concerns

The program is underway, has an enrollment of # carefully selected teenagers in uniform, and has excellent professional leadership from the Police Department of (City). It will be expanded as additional funds become available, which hinges on the official perception of the program’s value to the total effort in (City).

III. Description of the Proposed Expansion of the Scouting Program

A. General---Because of a lack of sufficient effective role models who are willing or able to volunteer their leadership to Scouting programs in (City), traditional Scouting programs have met with only limited success. Adults, worried about day- to- day living, do not readily volunteer for leadership positions. Fear of violence often precludes night meetings.

For these reasons, several carefully selected part-time "in-school Scouting specialists” are employed to carry out the program in the schools. Currently, there are # part-time specialists employed by the Boy Scout council and # employed by the Girl Scouts, staffing the program in the six participating schools. Each agency recruits, trains, and supervises its own staff members independently, while maintaining frequent communication and cooperation. The in-school Scouting staff has become a very effective, dedicated group, and several have been with the program since it was begun in (year). All of them are residents of (City).

In-school Scouting adapts the traditional scouting program to the classroom. In order to be acceptable for inclusion in the educational program, it must be "curriculum appropriate". In inner-city situations, programs that encourage self-esteem, values development, interpersonal relationship building and life-skills are recognized as vital to the student's education. The Scouting program has achieved very positive results in these areas, and is thus very enthusiastically received and accepted by teachers and school administrators.

The Key Elements of In-School Scouting in (City) Are:

1. The program is presented in schools during school time to youth in first through six grades.

2. The Scout councils (Boy and Girl Scouts) recruit, employ, train, supervise, and evaluate the in-School Scouting specialists.

3. The specialists work closely with the classroom teachers to complement and enrich the school curriculum.

4. The classroom teacher assists in an annual evaluation of the program’s effectiveness.

5 .The programs takes place one class period each week for # weeks during school hours. The students participate with their own age group and gender. On occasion the boys and girls participate together in special programs or field trips.

C. Timeline ---The in-school program progresses along the following timeline. (Activities will include, but are not limited to these):

Winter/Spring

· Celebration of Black History Month utilizing resources in the community.

· Presentation of Kids on the Block programs which give children opportunities to discuss diversity, abuse issues, drug prevention, and other timely issues.

· Conflict- resolution training in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney’s office.

· Annual field trip to cultural institution.

· Annual awards ceremony for presentation of recognition items.

· Weekly activity sessions featuring a variety of life- skill topics consistent with program goals and concepts of Scouts.

Summer/Fall

· Recruitment and training of program staff.

· Reorganization of Scout groups within the school with principal and teachers.

· Distribution of classroom material to youth, including program handbooks, badge sashes, insignia and membership cards.

IV. Summary

We are asking for help from the (Foundation Name) in order to expand what we feel are successful Scouting programs in (City) (State), programs that can make a significant difference in this high-profile poverty- and crime-ridden community.

We are seeking funding to expand the In-School Scouting program from # elementary schools to # schools. (There are a total of # elementary schools in (City), each with similar demographics.)

We are asking for funding to enrich and expand traditional Scouting programs in (City) through improved leader training and more summer camping and high- adventure opportunities.

The (Name of Council) is ideally positioned to take a strong leadership role in turning this community around, by providing the framework for at-risk young people to rise above their circumstances and lift the community with them.

We need financial help in order to make this kind of an impact, and we pledge responsible stewardship of any funding entrusted to our care.